The Leader of the House
by dragonballshizzle
Summary: AU. What would happen to the world if Voldemort killed the child of prophecy, Neville? Who, if anyone, would save everyone. The Leader of the House of course.
1. Making bricks without straw

Neville was the child of prophecy; however he died that night, leaving Voldemort undefeatable…surely not?

**THE LEADER OF THE HOUSE**

Thump. The dumbbells landed on the cushioned workout floor as Harry doubled over, exhausted from his conditioning training.

"Remind me why I have to do weights again when the guy trying to kill me has barely lifted his hand other than to kill in like, 20 years?" Harry wheezed out, sweat cascading off his thin, wiry frame.

"There is more to a wizard duel-"

"Than just magic, yeah I know, I didn't expect an actual answer you know," interrupted Harry, he was always short after conditioning training, most people would be, especially if they had the same trainer as Harry

"Now now, that's no way to talk to your father is it?" asked the trainer, his mocking tone further fuelling the bad mood that Harry was in.

"You're not in this boat alone, son,"

Harry turned to his left to see his mother, thoroughly exhausted as well, but with a smile, most probably due to the familiar banter that seemed to always occur between her two boys.

"Yeah, you're right, dad," said Harry, a defeated look on his face.

"Hah!" cried a smiling James, visibly happy, having guilted his son into a pseudo apology "I knew I could do it," said James, Harry turned around, just in time to see his mother hand over a silver sickle to his father

"Oh real nice, guys," pouted Harry, although this did not last very long and soon his face matched the grins that had already found their way onto his parents faces. Harry joined his mother on the floor and had, what was in his opinion, a well deserved rest.

Harry Potter was about as normal as any young wizard born with Voldemort at large. He was average height, of average build and achieved average grades. He lived a pretty good life, in his opinion, if you discount the constant, nagging fear that Voldemort or any of his followers, which, by the way, could be anyone, thanks to the Imperius curse, could be on his doorstep, looking for anything from gold, to sex, to murder, and on most occasions, all three. And not always in that order. Because of that, almost everywhere in the wizarding world was unsuitable for anyone against Voldemort to make a living, resulting in many extraordinary people doing rather ordinary jobs, in the muggle world. James and Lily Potter, or Tom and Jane Smith, as they were known to the muggle government, where two of those people; James a personal trainer, and Lily a chef. They blended in with the mainstream world, their wizarding identities hidden from the world, only a select few in the Order of the Phoenix knowing their exact location.

James Potter used to have a job in the ministry, but he had to resign after Voldemort made it clear that he would not allow anyone to work without complete loyalty, something James was obviously not able to do. This resulted in his integration with the muggle world, after faking their own deaths, at the hands of Death Eaters. Most of the Order had used this method to protect themselves from a life on the run, after the Death Eaters managed exploit the Fidelus charm, destroying many good members, including, but not limited to, Sirius Black and Remus Lupin, the latter's death resulting in a crucial breakdown in negotiations between werewolves and the light side. Not that the light side had much chance. Voldemort's influence had spread over the whole of the country, with the exception of Hogwarts, not that he hadn't tried. Voldemort had done everything shot of a full on assault of the castle to gain control, stopping short only due to the ineptitude of his _former_ servants. Failure was not well received by Lord Voldemort. Hogwarts would soon be his though, once his plans had come to fruition, and once he had the final piece of the puzzle, he would venture outward, with the intention of making _everyone_ know the name Lord Voldemort.

_Voldemort strode purposefully over the threshold of the Longbottom house. He knew he was going to tighten his grip on England with his actions tonight. Snape had been on his death list for failing to bring him anything noteworthy in his time as a Death Eater, but this piece of information was more valuable than Snape could ever imagine. Snape would be rewarded after this no doubt, as Voldemort rewarded a good source of information almost as much he rewarded loyalty. He did not care whether the Longbottoms had prepared for his arrival. Snape had made it very clear that the prophecy was made to Dumbledore, who had known ties to the Longbottoms, so it was plausible the fool may have warned them. He removed the front door from its hinges, sending its flying into the cramped house. The door caught the man, sending him spinning into the fireplace, his life snuffed out in an instant_

"_Silencio," said Voldemort, almost lazily, with a flick of his wand in the direction of the woman in the room. She hadn't even drawn her wand. He mentally scoffed. Killing this woman would be an insult to his wand. He moved towards the crib, hidden just out of sight, only noticeable from the noise it was emitting. The woman by now had retrieved her wand and was sending spell after spell at the Dark Lord, none of which did a thing to halt his progress towards her son. He met the child's eyes. He hissed. He raised his wand. There room was bathed in the green light, and the baby was gone, the life in its eyes gone, absorbed by his own red ones. He turned and left the house, leaving Nagini to continue her dinner now that his job was done. He stopped short of the gate. Another hiss and his pet arrived at his ankles. And with a pop they were both gone._

Voldemort was certainly ruthless with his enemies. He had long forgone actively searching for them; he knew their numbers were so insignificant that they were solely an unpleasant spot on the masterpiece that was the Dark Lord's England. And he could live with a spot or two. He had long since killed the supposed 'greatest threat' to his reign, forgetting the child's name the instant the light faded from his eyes. He relished killing children. Dumbledore was an old man now, his magic barely able to dent the armoury that he, the greatest wizard ever, had surrounded himself with; only able to hang onto Hogwarts by the failings of his servants, so he had no true rival, no one even close to being on par with himself, so he found his joys in killing children. Adults made too much noise dying. His followers loved torturing before killing, but after more or less 30 years at the top, begging became annoying. Children didn't beg. They couldn't. Some cried, other simple looked, wide eyed at their fate, but the rush from killing something so defenceless was almost as thrilling as killing a rival.

Harry finished his breakfast and headed for the shower, ready to pack his things for the Hogwarts Express. He was in his last year at Hogwarts, but he mainly kept to himself, barely making any friends. This wasn't anything unusual. Trust killed with Voldemort around, and most people, at the end of the day, want to live. So Harry packed his things away, trips to Diagon Alley for books had long since been eradicated from the general population's itinerary. Most of the shops had 'moved' anyway, the once bustling centre of commerce had now been taken over by its neighbour, Knockturn Alley, so Harry and the rest of the students at Hogwarts received their books at school from the local merchants and stores that had relocated to Hogsmeade.

Five minutes after Harry left the shower, he was done with his packing, ready for the trip to King's Cross. Everything was done very succinctly in these dark times, the days of parents waving, hugging, crying over the children leaving the nest were ruthlessly stamped out after Neville Longbottom died.

Most of England had not tied the fact that Neville died on Halloween, 17 years earlier, to the escalation of terror, but those in the know, the few who were privy to the full story, put two and two together. That full story, which even Voldemort doesn't know to this day, may be the tinniest glimmer of hope in an otherwise dank and dreary existence.

Harry returned to the kitchen to find his mum washing up. He liked the fact that even though his mother was magical, she still held onto her inherent muggle-ness. It was a constant reminder to Harry that there was more to this world than magic.

"You finished packing, Harry?" asked his mum, without taking her eyes off the sink, hearing the thud of a bag hitting the floor

"Yeah, when are we heading out again?" enquired Harry, his hand absentmindedly running through his messy hair

"In about 20 minutes," said Lily, drying the final piece of crockery and placing it in the cupboard.

"Alright I'll be outside, gimme a shout when your ready," said Harry, halfway up the stairs. Lily sighed, knowing fully well that Harry was most probably on his broomstick, flying around the house. It wasn't entirely safe for him to do it, but Lily and James had decided that as much as they wanted to, they couldn't wrap their son in cotton wool. James entered the kitchen and saw that pensive look on his wife's face, along with the mild whoosh of a broomstick and realised what his wife was thinking of

"He's done alright, considering," said James, an arm finding its way around Lily

"Yeah," Lily sighed, leaning into the embrace "I just wish-"

"Me too Lils, me too" said James, squeezing her briefly and then making his way upstairs to get ready for the trip to King's Cross

_Dumbledore sat in his office, his demeanour rather laid back; as if what he was about to discuss were as trivial as the weather._

"_I understand what I'm about to tell you may come as a surprise, considering everything that you have been told previously" He began, maintaining his laid back demeanour "But I need you to tell your son everything I'm about to tell you right now, however, he cannot know its from me, that point I cannot stress enough" James Potter looked to his wife and newborn son in her arms_

"_And when exactly are we supposed to tell Harry whatever this is?" asked Lily, confusion etched on her face_

"_Harry, how fitting" Dumbledore muttered, almost to himself "You will tell Harry this the summer he turns 17. He must be 17 when you tell him, telling him before hand will be detrimental to his development" Dumbledore paused to survey his 2 guests. They seemed confused, yet willing to listen. "Harry is going to play a vital role in rebuilding the wizarding world once Voldemort has been destroyed" Dumbledore allowed the weight of his words to seep into the young couple_

"_So who will be the one to kill Voldemort, we know he got to the little Longbottom" said James, screwing up his face at the last words_

"_Yes, unfortunately the Longbottoms were killed by Lord Voldemort himself just yesterday, but he was acting on false information. I believe, and I strongly suggest you agree with me" A wry smile briefly forming on his face "That Voldemort has been acting under the false information or rather misinformation. This is important because Voldemort has methods of finding out the truth far worse than we can imagine, and if he has succumbed to false information then either he is not as powerful he has made himself out to be or he has simply got careless" Dumbledore paused again for effect, taking in a rather unnecessary breath. When he continued, he was no longer laid back; his eyes twinkled with the seed of an idea. "I believe that it is the latter, and the effect of this overconfidence will be his downfall"_

"_So what has this got to do with Harry" asked James, his confusion mirrored in Lily's face_

"_In a word, nothing, and that is why he will prosper, for Voldemort is no longer as motivated as he once was, for he feels he has no true rival" Dumbledore said, leaning forward on his desk, his wrinkled face alive with the plan he had concocted _

"_I'm still confused as how my Harry is involved in any of this" asked Lily, gently rocking the baby boy in her arms_

"_Harry will lead a group of like minded individuals to the destruction of Lord Voldemort!" Dumbledore spoke, his eyes wild "Harry has the potential to be far stronger than anyone the Dark Lord could even imagine"_

"_But how could you know that" James interrupted "He's barely a few months old!"_

"_That, you will have to take my word on, some things are better left unknown" Dumbledore paused _

"_So he's the real chosen one, not the Longbottom boy?" asked James, his confusion rapidly becoming anger_

"_Ah, that, we cannot be sure of. I can only say he will lead a group that will take down Voldemort. Whether it is he or someone else that deliver the blow that rids the world of Voldemort, I cannot say, but when he is of age, you will see yourself that what I'm saying is not far from the truth" Dumbledore finished, his chin resting on his steepled fingers, eyes twinkling all the while_

"_And we're supposed to take your word on all of this?" asked Lily._

_Dumbledore smiled. "That would be nice, yes". "Now if you don't mind" Dumbledore said, motioning towards the door "I have pressing matters to attend to" Dumbledore stood, shaking James' hand and smiling at Lily, watching the young family leave his office. Dumbledore turned his back on the closing door and sighed. This really was the worst part bout seeing the big picture; no matter what, someone was going to end up collateral damage _

"Harry" called James, looking over to his wife for support, which he received, as always. He really had been fortunate that she let him into his life, something that he never let her forget

"Yes dad" called Harry from the top of the stairs

"I need you downstairs" said James; his son really could be a teenager sometimes. Harry took the steps down 2 at a time, to find himself in the living room, with his mum on the sofa, dad standing.

"What's going on?" asked Harry, reading that something was amiss from the less than jovial faces that looked almost alien on his normally happy parents

"Harry, we need to tell you something, and we need you to believe us"


	2. Like a ton of bricks

**THE LEADER OF THE HOUSE**

**CHAPTER 2:**

**LIKE A TON OF BRICKS**

"What's going on?" asked Harry, reading that something was amiss from the less than jovial faces that looked almost alien on his normally happy parents

"Harry, we need to tell you something, and we need you to believe us" James paused to look at his wife, his mixed emotions portrayed in her face. "Harry, we've done our best, and we'd like to think that you haven't missed out on anything, but your 17 now, a man, so its time we told you the truth". Now Harry was scared, he'd only had a conversation like this twice in his life, and neither of them ended up boding well for him.

"Harry, you may have noticed that people don't really stay around you for too long; friends come and go but never stay long. There's a reason for that-"

"Wait, how would you know if I have friends or not?" interrupted Harry, not liking how much his parents knew about things they should have no way of knowing.

"Well, you see a charm was placed on you on your 1st birthday Harry, the first time you accidentally produced magic. That charm was to suppress your magic in order to hide your presence from any of Voldemort's magical detectors" said Lily, wringing her hands all the while.

"What's a magical detector" asked Harry, sitting down in the armchair opposite his parents where no sitting, his mind reeling.

"Well" filled in James "Around the time when you were born, Voldemort heard a prophecy. That prophecy made Voldemort believe that a child who was born around the time you were, would be born with the ability to bring an end to his life. Naturally, Voldemort was inclined to nip any potential threat in the bud"

"So Voldemort and his followers," continued Lily "used special devices, effectively specially modified radiation detectors. You see, magically beings emit a certain wavelength of energy, undetectable to anything other than that machine, with more magically powerful beings emitting more energy."

"When Voldemort killed Neville Longbottom, only a few short months into both of your lives," continued James "Voldemort believed that he was the child the prophecy spoke of. He neglected to check for any magical energy from Neville, I mean, the kid was barely 3 months old, there shouldn't have been any reason to check him, most professional say that it takes children years to open their magical floodgates so to speak."

"But the day after Neville died, we" said Lily, who paused, unsure how to tell her son the rest of the story without implicating Dumbledore, whom they promised not to.

"Came into contact with a magical detector" lied James, looking at his wife, "Which basically, you broke" James finished, with a half smile.

"We knew we needed to hide your magical power, but if we suppressed it before you used it, subconsciously or otherwise, we risked bottling up all in that magic in you, and with no way of releasing it, who knows what would've happened to you?" said Lily, her hands, found their way to James', where they were embraced warmly "So we waited until you did something with your magic, your 1st birthday,"

"And we applied the restraint charm, keeping you safe, if somewhat magically stunted" supplied James "But now that you're 17 and magically mature, its time the restraint was lifted"

Harry was looking at his hands; he couldn't look at his parents and process what they had told him at the same time

"No, I don't believe it," started Harry

"Why?" asked James "If you truly look into yourself you'll know that nothing you've done magically has come easy. Everything has been a struggle, and yet somehow, you managed to do it. Part of that has been the physical training you've been doing, but mostly that ability to produce the level of magic you've produced on a fraction of what not only you have, but what your classmates have," said James, leaning forward towards his son, hoping for a sign that he was accepting what he was being told. Eventually, Harry looked up

"So, do you believe us now?" asked Lily hopefully

"Were late for the train" said Harry, rather more curtly than he intended but his mind was far removed from the trivialities of appeasing his parents

"Oh" said Lily, a little crestfallen "Well, let's get going then"

The journey to the Hogwarts Express was rushed to say the least, but Harry was glad, it gave him an excuse not to have to talk. He didn't think that he could right now, his mind was so confused he didn't think he'd ever mend it. Harry barely made the train; his goodbyes to his parent went missing in the rush to catch it, but he made it onboard, just, and managed to find a compartment that was relatively empty. He sighed, relieved he didn't have to deal with the bombshell his parents dropped on him. How very premature. No sooner had he sighed than his compartment door opened revealing Head Girl and fellow Gryffindor, Hermione Granger

"Harry?" Hermione asked "I've got a note for you" handing a scroll of parchment to Harry:

**Harry**

**I trust you have spoken with your parents. We need to talk. Meet me at my office immediately after the feast**

**Professor Dumbledore**

Oh bugger, thought Harry, there goes that plan.

Hermione stayed at the door, looking at Harry, staring so hard, as if she could understand him solely by staring hard enough. Harry raised his eyes to find Hermione, still at the door. It was only when he raised his head up that she turned heel and left, not before Harry noticed that rather quizzical look on her face, but Harry neither cared, nor had the energy to figure that out. The slanted handwriting of Professor Dumbledore's note, more specifically, what was written, had brought back the conversation that he tried in vain not to think about. What his parents said to him raised more questions than he really wanted to deal with. _Did he really have no friends?_ Harry wasn't a loner, but there wasn't anyone he could actually call friend and he was fine with that, the mantra _Trust kills_ was more apt now than ever so having everyone at arms length seemed to be the logical thing to do. _How did Dumbledore know about this?_ That was the one question, out of the multitude that could have, that occupied Harry's mind for his final journey up to the majestic castle of Hogwarts. Harry pulled on his school robes, his quiet reflection only broken by the sheer majesty of Hogwarts grounds. No matter how many times he'd seen them, they always seemed to radiate power and safety, Harry thought, as his eyes outlined the grounds as the train slowed to a halt. Harry left the train, casually weaving in and out of groups of friends who were looking for carriages to share, until he found a relatively deserted carriage. Harry had been blending into the background for so long that he didn't notice that he had been doing it, along with so many other things that still existed; friendships, romance and all emotions that normal teenagers would feel.

Harry found his seat on the Gryffindor table, saying hello to those who passed him by, laughing mildly at jokes but never truly engaging in conversation, of which there was plenty to choose from. _Maybe what they were saying is true_ pondered Harry, flexing his forearm under the table. Harry barely paid attention throughout the sorting, unable to stop the bubbling sensation in his stomach at the thought of his impending meeting with Dumbledore. Harry had never spoken to the man before, so he was not nervous about having an actual conversation with him, it's just that he had so many questions he needed answers to and how could he know to trust Dumbledore. _Sometimes ignorance can be bliss_. As soon as that thought appeared in his head, he instantly quashed it. Dumbledore was easily the brightest beacon of light against the Dark Lord, and while Harry was not entirely wrong about his doubts, something that he would come to find out sooner than he had hoped, he would at the very least give the man the time of day. Especially if he provided answers.

Before he knew it, Harry was outside the Headmasters office, waiting for him to arrive from the feast. He didn't have to wait long before the sky blue cloak of Albus Dumbledore came around the corner

"Harry" said Dumbledore, a friendly smile on his face "please, come in" said Dumbledore, placing a hand on Harry's shoulder as the gargoyle turned to reveal the staircase to the Headmasters office.

"Please have a seat" Dumbledore indicated to an empty chair, the other side of his own, which Harry did. "Now I trust you will have a lot of questions but I must ask that you indulge this old fool first, and hopefully I will have answered those questions for you." Dumbledore paused, and when Harry said nothing, he took it as a sign to continue.

"Thank you Harry" continued Dumbledore "By the mere fact that you are here means that Miss Granger delivered my note to you, so I must thank her for that" Dumbledore must have seen the impatience in Harry's face for he hastily added "But that can be done another time. On to more pressing matters" said Dumbledore, leaning forwards onto his desk, "You, Harry James Potter, are meant for great things. You are the person who will change the course of this country, and perhaps the world" Dumbledore paused, trying to read the young man's face "Perhaps a demonstration would be more beneficial" said Dumbledore, rising from his seat, throwing back the sleeves of his robes, freeing his arms "If you could be so kind as to join me Harry" said Dumbledore, his polite tone belying the fact that it was not up for debate. Dumbledore raised his wand to Harry's chest, speaking a language that Harry had never heard before. The more Dumbledore spoke, the brighter Harry became, until he was too bright to even look at himself, forcing him to close his eyes. On went Dumbledore, the strange tongue further fuelling the reaction occurring in Harry's body, until Dumbledore suddenly stopped, seemingly finished whatever incantation that was causing Harry body to glow in such a manner, and Harry opened his eyes, slowly at first, but after seeing no further sign of the blinding light, opened them fully to see Dumbledore had returned to his seat, arms fully robed and a satisfied smile on his face. Harry sat down again, waiting for the Headmaster to speak

"Hmm interesting" Dumbledore muttered to no one in particular "Harry!" he said with sudden energy, interrupting the question that was on Harry's tongue. "I mustn't keep you any longer than necessary, you have lessons in the morning, so I shall make this next part brief. There are a few rules that go along with this that are of the utmost of importance. Firstly, do not use your augmented powers unless strictly necessary. Secondly, beware of everyone around you, and finally, do not tell anyone of this meeting, not even your parents. Understood?" asked Dumbledore, Harry's eyes meeting his for the first time

"Yes sir" said Harry, getting up to leave

"Your will be able to venture deeper into previously unknown realms of magic, magic more powerful than anyone, including Lord Voldemort himself, could ever imagine," said Dumbledore, "Oh and Harry" added Dumbledore

"Yes sir?" said Harry, turning around to face the ageing Headmaster,

"Have a good year" said Dumbledore with a smile, his eyes fixing Harry a piercing stare. Harry left the Headmaster's office, leaving Dumbledore to ponder what he had just done.

"You do know what you have just done don't you!" said Phineas Nigellus "You've basically told that boy everything that he has and no way to control it! We both no that he will no follow any of your rules, Headmaster! What were you-?"

"Enough, Phineas" said Dumbledore; calmly raising a hand to stop the portrait mid rant "It is for Harry to decide whether or not he deems me trustworthy enough to follow my rules as opposed to those which he has been following so far" finished Dumbledore, raising his head to meet the eyes of the previous Headmasters and Headmistresses, before retiring for the night.

Harry left Dumbledore's office with conflicting emotions, yes his parents had lied to him, but how could he trust Dumbledore, who, not including that previous conversation, had not spoken to Harry individually before in his life? His parents would know what to do, so, even though Dumbledore made it expressly clear, he resolved himself to contact his parents and tell them what Dumbledore had told him. But, in the meantime, he decided that he would test out his augmented power, solely to see if what Dumbledore had done had any affect at all; trust was a fickle beast and Harry knew he was being rather reckless with his, and judging on the stories he heard through the grapevine, that's what got people killed. _Dumbledore would never intentionally put a student in harm's way_ Harry reasoned. How very was wrong was he. The Fat Lady interrupted Harry's musing

"Password?" she asked, her usual personable manner dispensed, suggesting she had asked this question too many times for her liking today.

"Err" Harry didn't find out the password before he went to see Dumbledore. He had very few alternatives at his disposal, and it was cold in the corridor so Harry attempted the quickest solution he could think of- guessing

"Gillyweed" said Harry; no response

"You'll never get in like that," said a voice from behind Harry. He turned to find Hermione Granger standing behind him, the quizzical look from earlier replaced with one of sympathy; it seems she had seen the whole scene play out "I had a feeling that you wouldn't know what the password would be after you more or less ran out of the Great Hall earlier."

"I didn't realise I ran," replied Harry, a rather sheepish look on his face

"That doesn't matter now" continued Hermione, stepping towards the portrait, "The password is 'Puffapod'." The portrait swung open and Harry was not surprised to see it was still pretty full, the meeting with Dumbledore has lasted no more than 10 minutes, so everyone was continuing the conversations they had started during the feast. Suddenly, Harry was very aware that there were more eyes on him than usual; usually there were, to the best of Harry's knowledge, no eyes, but today was different, as if the was a large mark on his face. Harry fixed his glasses, a nervous tick from childhood, and proceeded to a free spot for some quiet reflection, however, it seemed as though the rest of Gryffindor were not on the same page.

"Harry?" asked a nervous looking third year girl "Harry Potter?"

"Yes?" replied Harry, adjusting his glasses again and looking at the random girl, only to find she had retreated to the safety of her friends, giggling away and muttering, leaving Harry to ponder that strange interaction. Now Harry was not an amateur when it came to the opposite sex, but he had thought that such interactions were reserved for the most attractive of males, something that he surely would have known by now, his final year at Hogwarts. He was not an ugly young man, but he was most definitely not up there with the likes of Dean Thomas, the bachelor of Gryffindor, known for moving through girl after girl. No, Harry had not changed over the summer, he was still the same average guy, his only defining feature his emerald green eyes, which had earned a girlfriend or two in the past, however short those relationships were. Harry got up, stretched, and left the common room in search of his bed, his head pleading with him to find somewhere quiet for processing time.

"Harry? Harry Potter?" asked a rather bold third year girl

"Yes?" came the reply, only for the former to run away

"How very interesting" muttered Hermione,

"What's interesting?" asked a rather lanky red headed boy, who was now peering in the direction that Hermione was.

"I'm just wondering why that girl acted the way she acted," replied Hermione, her signature quizzical gaze fixed on the now stretching Harry

"Oh," said Ron, slightly dejected, "Why don't you ask them and find out?" suggested Ron rather half heartedly, knowing fully well that she would never do such a thing

"I would never do something like that, Ron," said Hermione, affronted

"Oh c'mon Hermione, don't pretend as if you don't flat out ask when you want to know something" said Ginny, who seemingly was involved in another conversation before this statement

"N-not always" said Hermione, blushing furiously at this comment much to the surprise of Ron; Ginny's expression a wry smile "I mean he's always been _around_ but he hasn't he- hasn't" finished Hermione, rather lamely.

"Maybe he found some charisma over the summer?" said Ginny, turning towards the two of them, giving the conversation her full attention now, "or maybe, Hermione just wants to get to _know_ him," waggling her eyebrows suggestively, causing more blushing from Hermione, while the now empty space in which Harry once occupied receiving eye daggers from Ron.

"He's the same guy as he's been the last 6 years, just that guy you know, who's just _there_, just that he's now got to fend off the advance of little girls" said Ron, his gaze not moving

"Eloquently put as always Ron" said Ginny

"Why do you care anyway, Hermione?" asked Ron, ignoring Ginny and suddenly rounding on Hermione. Ginny saw that as her queue to leave, the only thing worse than listening to one of their arguments, was being stuck in the middle, one of the many reasons why Ginny was glad she was not in their year. Ginny turned back to her previously ignored conversation, reintegrating seamlessly, but she couldn't argue; there _was_ something different about Harry, but that wasn't her problem in the slightest. Didn't stop Harry from entering her dreams though.


	3. The leopard that changed its spots

_A/N Wow, thanks for all the followers, definitely got me excited, which helped with this chapter. Oh btw I was told to warn for lemons so you've been 'lemoned'._

**THE LEADER OF THE HOUSE**

**CHAPTER 3:**

**THE LEOPARD THAT CHANGED ITS SPOTS**

Harry awoke early after the most unusual dream. A dream was unusual for Harry in itself as he was normally dreamless, being able to count the mount of times he had a dream on one hand, but anyone would see this as being unusual. He was standing a top of Hagrid's hut, looking into the Forbidden Forest, with the sunset in the background; the most amazing shades of red, more than he'd ever seen in his life. Something was threatening to creep over the tree tops, something that was unmistakably a face. The features were distorted but it took the place of the sun, making it seem as though the red hue of the sky were the flaming tendrils of hair to go with this face. Harry had no idea what to make of this dream, but made a mental note to bring it up with his parents when he next saw them. Harry was struggling to keep up with the rapid pace his life had suddenly taken. He was not adverse to change, but going from 10 to 100 mph would be a shock to anyone's system, especially those who don't expect it. Harry looked in the mirror, outwardly, his face showed no sign of his internal struggle; he needed to demonstrate to himself if he had any extraordinary power, like his parents and Dumbledore had said. He decided that a trip to the lake would serve that need, and a bit of fresh air would do no harm. Two steps at a time he headed down the stairs to the common room, after a quick shower, only to find himself re-submerged into his dream. Only the mumble of something wriggly underneath him brought him back to reality

"Gerroff me" said the wriggly something underneath Harry, who quickly righted himself to find that he was straddling Ginny Weasley

"What were you playing at" fired Ginny, brushing hair out of her face

"I'm sorry" replied Harry, offering a hand to help Ginny up, which went unused

"Next time watch where you're going" flared Ginny, making eye contact with Harry, and promptly turning as red as her hair

"Yeah I will" said Harry to the now retreating figure of Ginny Weasley. Harry continued on his way, inwardly cursing himself for running into someone; he would have to pay more attention in the future.

Harry made it to the lake without further interruption as it was early on the first day of term and there wasn't anybody to disturb him. He made his was to the far side of the lake, where he would be less likely spotted, if, in fact, there was something to spot. Harry inhaled deeply, wondering what he should do in order to test his magic.

"Accio Guide to Advanced Transfiguration" cried Harry, pointing in the direction of his dormitory, as inspiration struck. When his book arrived, he turned to the last chapter, looking for a N.E.W.T level spell. Once he found an adequate spell (turning himself into a frog), he tried it out.

Ginny Weasley did not have a good night's sleep, and any who knew her would know that she did not operate very well on limited hours of sleep, unfortunately, Harry Potter was not one of those people, which made it pretty bad for him when she bumped into him on her way to the common room. On any other day, Ginny would've admitted she was in the wrong; she was the one who crossed his path, but today was not that day.

"Gerroff me" she managed to say, some part of her assailant inhibiting her ability to speak clearly "What the hell are you playing at," she said, removing her hair from her mouth.

"I'm sorry" said her attacker, extending a hand to help her up, which she refused on principle

"Next time watch where you're going" Ginny said, meeting his eyes, those unmistakable eyes, which vividly cause images of her dream to return, causing her to blush profusely. She had to get away from him, embarrassment had seen to that, moving her body away from the source of anguish. She barely heard what Harry said, her attention now solely on regaining her composure.

_Breath on her neck, goose bumps forming at its whim. Ginny smiled, knowing lips would soon follow the same path. She arched her neck, inviting lips which she received with a moan, which she reciprocated. She felt herself being spun around. Eyes met eyes. Brown met green. Her tongue darted out, preparing her lips. He brought them down with intense passion, causing more moaning. Tongues found each other; tasting, exploring, caressing each other. Hands moved from being entwined in hair, to backs, chests and beyond. A crescendo of pleasure was building-_

Ginny also knew that a bit of her temper was due to awaking at that point in the dream, with her whole body tingling. Her first movements was to touch her lips, the sensations from the dream gone, but the memories not.

Ginny was experienced in kissing, but this was something that she could never imagine, and then to run into those same green eyes first thing in the morning! It was more than she could handle, so she had to run away. Was she proud of her reaction? Hello no, but its not liked it mattered, her boyfriend would never find out about this dream, and the chances of running into Harry Potter again would be low; they simply did not run in the same circles. At times, Ginny wondered what circles he _did_ run in, but that wasn't important. What was important was the fact that she now couldn't Harry Potter out her head. It didn't help that he was making his way to the lake, directly below Gryffindor tower. As much as she wanted to turn way, her eyes followed Harry, as he made his way around the lake. She was focused on Harry so much that she didn't notice when a book flew out of the boy's dormitory. She did, however, notice when that book clattered into the back of her head and out of the open window in the common room. She must have been disorientated from the blow because the target of her sudden obsession surely couldn't turn into a lion? Ginny blinked and rubbed the back of her head, only to find Harry, standing in the same spot, now making his way back around the lake. _He must have wanted to go for a walk or something_ reasoned Ginny's mind, _people don't become Lions. Lions don't just appear, or have wings, even at Hogwarts_. Ginny shook her head again, removing her eyes from the small figure of Harry Potter, the image she saw getting hazier as the seconds passed, praying that she didn't run into him again that day.

"Shit" breathed Harry, when he returned to himself "I can't believe that actually worked" he continued, walking back to the castle, flexing his muscles as he went. _I just turned myself into a bloody Griffin!_ Harry thought, _I have no idea how that happened but it felt bloody amazing_. As he entered the Great Hall, he found himself happier than he had been in a long time. He wasn't outwardly happy, but something inside him had finally clicked, like he was missing a piece until now, which, in truth, he was. He didn't feel any smarter than yesterday, nor any stronger, just _different_. It was hard for him to truly define it to himself. It was actually more than just missing a piece; it was almost like _he_ was the piece missing from something that was completed. It seemed to Harry like he had come to terms with what he had been told. He sat down, helping himself to some bacon and toast, feeling rather content with himself. Performing a piece of legendary transfiguration does that to you.

Voldemort however, was not content right now. No, furious would be closer to the truth than anything else. He had felt a magical pulse of extreme energy yesterday night and no one had any answers for him. And when people didn't have answers for Lord Voldemort they usually ended up dead.

"Selwyn" Voldermort said, his eyes on his wand

"Yes my Lord" replied Selwyn, his own eyes never leaving the Dark Lord's wand

"Do you care to tell me why we have yet to find the source of the magical anomaly that was found yesterday?" Voldemort asked, his soft voice causing everyone around the table to lean towards their master

"Our sensors are meant for broad scale detection sir, there are people working on finding the exact location as we speak" said Selwyn, chancing a glance at his master; his expression had not changed

"So, you have nothing to report to me…" Voldemort said, his voice trailing off, his wand now twirling in his wand hand

"M-my Lord-" stammered Selwyn, only to be cut off by a thin, serpentine hand

Do not worry yourself over this anymore," said the owner of the less-than-human hand. Selwyn stopped talking, but his eyes continued to plead with the Dark Lord. He had been around long enough to know that he was in trouble. Voldemort looked Selwyn in the eye, and a gateway of knowledge was given to him.

"Selwyn," Voldemort said, a hint of surprise in his voice, "you have been lying to your master?" the intonation lead him to believe it was a question, but he knew better than to answer. "What is it you know of that necklace?" Voldemort asked rhetorically, and again he delved into the mind of his follower.

"It seems you were sloppy Selwyn; you allowed yourself to be obliviated" continued Voldemort, having a conversation with himself in a room full of people. Voldemort paused. Selwyn was frozen to the spot, his fear paralyzing him, until, almost out of nowhere, Voldemort's temper exploded, green light removing the life from Selwyn, his body collapsing on the table. Silence rang around the room, no one wanting to speak out of turn for fear of receiving the same fate.

"Bella" said Voldemort

"Yes my Lord" answered Bellatrix, her bosom heaving at the mere mention of her name by her master

"I need to _attend_ to something, personally, and I want you to use your considerable _skills_ to get me a location" ordered Voldemort, his hand absently stroking the head of Nagini, who eyeing Selwyn

"It would be my utmost pleasure my Lord" her voice thick with desire to do the Dark Lord's bidding

"I trust you will not disappoint me" said Voldemort, and with that, he was gone.

Hermione was not listening. The rarity of such an occasion meant that whatever had caught her attention had to be above and beyond her first love, working. The object of her attention was in fact Harry Potter. He was giving off an entirely different aura; as if he was a modern day Clark Kent/ Superman type person. She had identified that he wasn't different on he train, or at the start of term feast; it had to be whatever he did after that, because when he made it to the common room, he was completely changed. A sharp poke in the side brought her train of thought to a crashing halt

"_What_?" she hissed, turning in the direction of her assailant.

"I said will you look over this for me" sad Ron, waving a piece of parchment in her face

"Go _away_ Ron" Hermione said, swatting away the offending piece of parchment.

"You said you'd look over it for me, but all you've done is stare at Harry bloody Potter" Ron finished, his temper flaring at the thought of Harry

"I was not!" Hermione lied, a gentle heat reaching her cheeks

"Oh you so were" said Ron, the parchment forgotten on the floor "why don't you go and marry him seen as though you cant stop drooling over him" said Ron, his anger quite evident, even if it was hidden under a layer of immaturity

"I was not _drooling_ Ronald" said Hermione, her own temper rising "and _you're_ the one who has been talking about him all day"

"No I haven't"

"Oh will you shut up for god sake, some of us are trying to relax over here!" said Ginny, who had entered the common room moments earlier to see the two of them at their best "Maybe if you were a bit quieter only the common room would be exposed to the two of you, instead of the whole castle" Ginny said, her hands in the air in frustration. Both Ron and Hermione flushed in embarrassment, looking over to see that the common room's collective attention, which was filling rapidly with students getting ready for dinner, was indeed directed at the two of them. It was then that Harry got up and made his way over to the three of them.

Harry had a fantastic day. Every thing, in every class, that he tried, came out perfectly. Even Slughorn, who had previously ignored him so intensely it seemed as though it was keeping him alive, had marvelled at Harry's potion. And outside class, people were noticing Harry as well. Many of the more attractive members of his year had given him sultry looks, so many in fact that by lunch is ego was so inflated that he walked around the castle with an air of ownership. All thoughts about being lied to, finding out the limit of his magic, were removed from his mind. He was finally popular, something which he didn't want to relinquish by thinking too hard. If his godfather were alive he would be so proud of Harry, who transformed from a reserved young man, into a randy teenage in hours. Harry returned to the common room at the end of his amazing day, doubting that it could have gone better if he had taken Felix Felicis. Harry was in the middle of listing the girls he would _entertain_ in the coming weeks, when he overheard a conversation about him. Well, overheard isn't the right word, considering they were more or less shouting.

"So, did you like what you saw?" asked Harry, making his way over to the source of the noise.

"N-no, well, erm" stammered Hermione, hiding her rapidly colouring face behind her hair

"We were talking about you, not to you" spat Ron, his anger towards Harry quite evident "So if you please" he finished, motioning Harry back to his seat

"Wow, Ron, jealous much?" said Ginny, which caused Ron to blush. It also shut him up, which was the main reason why Ginny was so short. "Look, I'm sorry about the two of them" said Ginny, looking back at her two friends, who were struggling to regain composure. "Don't take it personally, they have no volume control"

"Yeah I noticed" said Harry, smiling

"Yes, were really sorry about that Harry" said Hermione, her composure regained "Its just I can't help noticing that you're a bit _different_ now"

"Well I am different, in a good way" Harry finished with a smile

"I doubt it" muttered Ginny, "will you guys at least _try_ to keep it down in future?" and with that Ginny turned heel and left.

"Don't mind her Harry, she just ended it with Dean" said Hermione,

"Why, what did that bastard do to my sister?" asked Ron, flaring up

"Never you mind" said Hermione "Ginny's a big girl and she can do what she likes"

"I don't care about her; I just want to know if I have to hex that bastard into oblivion"

"She can fight her own battles Ron, as I said, she's a big girl" said Hermione

"She does seem to be able to handle herself" Harry added

"And what do _you_ know about my sister?" asked Ron, rounding on Harry

"She gave me a bollocking this morning when I knocked her over, so I'm not planning to accidentally hurt her again" said Harry, which made Hermione smile

"Yeah," sad Ron, his anger dissipating, "She does give out a mean bollocking, gets it from our mum. Was her fault as well wasn't it?"

"Probably, but if I was paying attention I might have avoided her" replied Harry, taking a seat in a nearby armchair.

"Yeah, that's Ginny for you" sad Ron, sharing a chuckle with Harry, his jealousy over Harry compartmentalised.

"So Harry, how did you get so smart all of a sudden?" asked Hermione.

"Nice segue" muttered Ron, for which he received a swift _Shut up!_

"I don't know" Harry lied, "I guess it all just clicked" replied Harry, any shock he felt from the sudden nature of the question masked by his now near permanent smile.

"I hope I didn't offend you or anything, it's just that you weren't really that good in the last 6 years, and all of a sudden, you just seem _different_" said Hermione, with the same hard stare as she did on the train

"No, no offence taken, it just was an _educational_ summer that's all" said Harry, and with that, he got up and left.

"Ron, did you see that?" asked Hermione, her eyes never leaving the retreating figure of Harry Potter.

"See what?" replied Ron

"He's hiding something, I can tell. I think he's under the influence of some dark magic" said Hermione, turning to face Ron

"What! How can you tell" asked Ron, his eyes moving rapidly from Hermione to Harry, who was conversing with a 6th year girl.

"One, stop looking at him like that, and two, I cant be sure, we need to set up some sort of test to see if he's in full control of his body or if he's under some kind of spell" said Hermione, literally pulling Ron's focus away from Harry

"And what will you do if he _is_ under some sort of dark magic?" asked Ron, curiosity and another unreadable emotion on his face

"We'll do something about it" said Hermione, her face determined.

"For once can that something involve us _not_ diving in head first?" Ron asked, his expression hopeful.

"I don't know Ron, but one way or another; we're going to uncover his secret."


	4. Like a house of cards

_A/N Sorry it's a bit late but I got stuck, I need some reviews! Lol but seriously, if could take the time out and tell me what you think I really couldn't tell you what that would mean to me. :D_

**THE LEADER OF THE HOUSE**

**CHAPTER 4:**

**LIKE A HOUSE OF CARDS**

Voldemort was in a pensive mood. _Wouldn't I have felt something?_ He thought, _never mind, there is strength in numbers_. Now that that matter was put to bed, he needed to lift his spirits.

"Yaxley" said Voldemort to the empty room

"Yes, my Lord" answered Yaxley, appearing at his master's feet.

"I want you to find me something to _play_ with" said Voldermort,

"Yes, my Lord. Do you have a preference today, my Lord?" asked Yaxley, rising to face the Dark Lord.

"No," he said, an evil smile forming on his face in anticipation; turning to the fire, "surprise me." And with that Yaxley departed, another cloaked figure entering as he left.

"Aah, I trust you have found the source of the anomaly, Bella" said Voldemort, maintaining his gaze into the fire.

"Yes, my Lord" said Bellatrix, bowing "We have narrowed down the source to Hogwarts." She finished, having casually put some distance between herself and the Dark Lord.

"Hogwarts?" said Voldemort, turning to face Bellatrix, his eyes as alive as the fire behind him, which was now illuminating his serpentine figure. Bellatrix had already begun to make an escape from the study, her master's reaction to bad news predictable.

_Curse that old fool!_ Thought Voldemort, as his temper caused death to all those in his path, _I must have that school! _He thought.

He eventually calmed himself down, after satisfying his bloodlust.

"Malfoy" he summoned, looking around at the damage he caused. _Good riddance_, he thought, _only the weak die_.

"Yes, my Lord" said Malfoy, appearing at his master's feet

"I trust your son is going to follow in his father's footsteps?" asked Voldermort, making his way back to the study.

"Y-yes, of course, my Lord" replied Malfoy, looking at the damage around him, realizing the Dark Lord recently received bad news.

"Good" Voldemort said, reaching the study and using his wand to reignite the fire. "I have a task for you, Lucius" finished Voldemort, sitting down in the only armchair in the room, staring at the fire.

"Whatever it is master I shall do it" said Malfoy, knowing fully well what his master was asking of him, though that didn't make it any easier to do.

"I need to speak to Draco. I need you to set it up, Lucius. See that it is done quickly" Voldemort said, "I trust you will not fail me"

"Yes my Lord" said Malfoy, and with that he was gone, just as he appeared, in the blink of an eye.

"_I want this castle" said Voldemort, his once handsome, human features seemingly taking on a more serpentine edge._

"_I'm afraid this castle cannot belong to any one person, Tom" said Dumbledore, his tone as playful as if he was discussing the quidditch_

"_Stop that rubbish old man! I don't want to hear your diplomatic answers" spat Voldemort, his true sentiment for his former teacher written on his face, "I just want the castle; I want your job"_

"_Surely you can have anything you want, Tom" said Dumbledore, a smile to match his tone_

"_Don't play with me old man! You know it's not that simple!" replied Voldemort, his tone exuding anger_

"_That's true, Tom, it isn't that simple, and yes I was responsible for making it so" said Dumbledore, his flippant tone clearly irking Voldemort, "but, as I made it so difficult, allow me to make it simple for you, its only fair" said Dumbledore, his eyes hardening. "Do you want me to give you the castle or do you want to take the castle?"_

"_I-I want the castle, by any way" said Voldemort, slightly put off by Dumbledore, though determined not to let it show again, "If you wish to give me the castle then that will be easier for all involved, though if you wish me to take it, I will" finished Voldemort, his gaze matching Dumbledore's intensity for a moment, before the older of the two relented, a sad face on his wrinkled features_

"_It's a shame that you think that, Tom" said Dumbledore, "there are things in this life we are destined to want but never have, or what would be the point of imagination?" mused Dumbledore, staring at his wand _

"_Hahahahaha" laughed Voldemort, "that is a defeatist attitude, old man; I will achieve everything I set out for. __**That**__ is the point of imagination"_

"_How naïve, yet refreshing at the same time" smiled Dumbledore, "You truly are a remarkable boy"_

"_IM A MAN YOU OLD FOOL!" shouted Voldemort, losing his rather loose grip on his cool, "DO YOU HAVE ANY __**IDEA**__ WHAT IVE DONE? WHAT I WILL DO?"_

"_I am sure I have an idea of those things, Tom"_

"_YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO CALL ME BY TAT FITHLY MUGGLE NAME!" interrupted Voldemort, springing out of his chair in a flash, knocking his chair onto the floor. "I trust you know what i'm called now" said Voldemort, after a calming deep breath, "it's a matter of respect" he finished._

"_Fear is not respect, Tom" said Dumbledore, his face full of pity._

"_Now whose being naïve?" sneered Voldemort "Does it not get the same result?_

"_In away yes, but that, in a nutshell is why this castle will never be truly yours. You could remove me by force, put yourself or a proxy in my place and this castle will still not be yours" said Dumbledore, his tone almost pleading Voldemort to understand where he was coming from._

"_Whatever old man," sneered Voldemort, "I take it from you're pathetic attempt to dissuade me from my plans, you are not giving me the castle. That's a coward's move" he finished, moving to the door. "I used to idolise you Dumbledore," Voldemort said, hand on door handle "but now I see you for what you truly are" and with that, he left_

"_And I you, Voldemort" sighed Dumbledore._

_I was naïve back then;_ thought Voldemort _Fear is not respect. It is __**much**__ more effective than respect._ Voldemort was roused from his thoughts by the appearance of Yaxley at the door, a burly young man being levitated ahead of him

"Aah, Yaxley, what have you brought for me today?" asked Voldemort, rising from his seat.

"Quidditch player, goes by the name of Wood" said Yaxley, unceremoniously dropping the quidditch player on the cold, marble floor

"What's your name boy," asked Voldemort, using his wand to lift the young man's head

"Oliver Wood" he said, with a determination his body could not back his voice up with, due to fear

"Oliver Wood" repeated Voldemort, turning his back on his captive, "Yaxley, hand him a wand. I want to duel this Oliver Wood." Yaxley tossed a wand at Oliver who promptly grabbed it and turn on the spot, only to remain where he was

"Thinking of apparating are we? Well, if you were thinking of flight then you certainly can't fight now can you? _Avada Kedavra!_" Oliver slumped to the ground, his once vibrant eyes now empty.

Ginny Weasley was not in a good mood, again, but for very different reasons. Dean, her so called boyfriend, whom she had defended to the hilt, had been caught in a broom closet with some random chick. Not only was that supposed to be _their_ closet, but she had to suffer the indignity of a whole class of 3rd year Gryffindors tell her about it. At lunch. After she destroyed Dean, she would have to teach those children _discretion_, she reasoned. And then to top off the sundae of shite that had been that day, the cherry was running into Harry '_I-dreamed-of-you-and-cant-stop-thinking-about-you_' Potter. She struggled through dinner, allowing her friends believe it was because she was heartbroken, which she wasn't. Pissed, yes, heartbroken, very doubtful. She was distracted because of Harry Potter. Any time she was distracted it was because of _him_. The dreams had not stopped, if anything they had gotten, worse (or better, depending on your point of view, reasoned a voice in her head), but he was doing his best to help her rid herself of her nightly _distractions_, by acting like a complete prick. Walking around like he was the shit and everyone else were flies (bzzzz, said the voice in Ginny's head), moving from one girl to the next, or at least rumours flying left right and centre, and in Ginny's experience, rumours were normally always based on truth. The worst part was the fact that he wasn't like this before. The sudden transformation was as suspicious as it was infectious; it took all of Ginny's willpower to stay away from Harry, his eyes seemingly radiating something as cold as steel yet as inviting as a summer's day all at the same time. She could manage her 'Harry issues' if she could just get some respite from him, but wherever she went he was there, from appeasing her feral side with her dreams at night, to confirming her suspicions by planning a trap from him during the day, he was there. And here she was, sitting with her co-conspirators, Hermione and Ron, dong her best to be involved and yet keep her mind off Harry. Easy.

"So we've gone through 3 plans so far that haven't been adequate," said Hermione, more to herself than to the others, "I only see one way left" she said, turning to Ginny "We need to seduce him." Ginny's face dropped suddenly, only to regain her composure just as quickly.

"Sure Hermione, how are you planning we go about this?" she asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "Are we going to slip him a love potion? Or are we just gonna walk up to him and snog the life out of him?" Hermione blushed,

"The plan is more subtle than that Ginny," said Hermione, ignoring Ron's silent but furious protests, "All we need to do is lure Harry to our trap area, no actual _intimacy_ needs to occur in order to do that"

"You could've led with that Hermione" said Ron, sighing in relief, leaning back in his chair, rocking it on two legs

"And what do you mean by we?" asked Ginny, still not totally on board with the plan.

"Well, one of us needs to be the bait, with the other stationed at the trap site with Ron, ready to initiate phase 2" Hermione said, choosing her words carefully. Ginny knew that Hermione was basically saying that she, Ginny, was the bait, but that didn't make the pill any easier to swallow; so, fighting against the betrayal she had no right to be feeling, she maintained the mask that hid her inner turmoil.

"OK, I'll be the bait" said Ginny, to the obvious relief of Hermione, and, more subtly, Ron; something Ginny would have normally noticed, but she wasn't herself anymore, especially when anything to do with Harry came up.

"Good" said Hermione, visibly happier than she was at the beginning of the planning conversation, leading Ron to think that this was her plan to begin with "now, we need to do this as soon as possible, who knows how much potential damage he could be doing, whether he knows it or not"

"How about tonight? Just before dinner?" suggested Ron

"Perfect" said Hermione, "can you get Harry to the unused classroom on the 7th floor, Ginny?"

"Sure" said Ginny, her voice rather more emotionless than she wanted, but she couldn't do anything about it now, so she got up and left, surprisingly happy that she was about to finally get some answers about why he had affected her so.

Nothing was ruining Harry's mood. It had been weeks since he'd had a single bad thought. In times of quiet reflection, Harry thought this was weird, but chalked it down as another effect of his, for lack of a better term, _rebirth_. He was lying on a sofa in the common room, when his reflection time was interrupted. He was used to these interruptions; they were usually always fun, but this one wasn't in keeping with the majority.

"Dumbledore asked me to give this to you" said a small boy with mousy brown hair in the year below Harry, whose energetic demeanour was evident in the way he handed Harry a scroll of parchment, positively bouncing on the balls if his feet, seemingly ecstatic at the mere fact he was at Hogwarts. Harry sat up, taking the note in his hand and nodding thanks towards the messenger, who smiled, then turned and left, his almost annoying amount of energy sending him in the direction of his friends.

**Harry,**

**I hope you have a good first few weeks. We need to talk. Meet me in my office now.**

**Professor Dumbledore**

_If only he was this succinct in person,_ thought Harry, getting up, only to find his path blocked. He looked up to find a pair of chocolate brown eyes looking at him, almost through him, but not in a piercing way, but in an endearingly curious way.

"Hello again" said Harry, finally managing to stand up, "and how can I help you today?" he asked

"I need to talk to you" said Ginny, her eyes never leaving Harry's, not that he could've looked away if he'd wanted to. "Now" she added. _Damn_ thought Harry, _I need to see Dumbledore._ Harry took a deep breath to clear his head, which actually did the opposite of what it was supposed to do, as his nose was filled with a very distracting mix of flowery scents.

"Um," Harry started, "sure, why not" Harry reasoned. _I can get rid of her before I get to Dumbledore's_, Harry thought, _and she smells __**way**__ too good to deny her._ Harry motioned for her to lead the way out of the common room and was dismayed to see her turn left, in the opposite direction of Dumbledore's office. _I'm sure Dumbledore wouldn't mind if I was a little late_ Harry thought, _it's not like its urgent or anything._ Harry walked easily with Ginny, initially waiting for her to say something, but sensing her reluctance, he began

"So, what do wanna talk about?" he asked, slipping his hands into the pockets of his robes

"Right, look, Harry, I need to tell you something" said Ginny, her words sounding familiar to Harry. _They're all the same_, he thought, smiling inwardly.

"Look" Harry said, grabbing her arm and spinning her around to face him "you don't have to say anything" he finished, inching closer to Ginny, who was rooted to the spot.

"M-maybe we should go somewhere private?" suggested Ginny, barely a whisper, her eyes closed

"Sure" whispered Harry into her ear, causing the little hairs at the back of her neck to stand on end and sending a shiver down her spine. He took her hand and led her into the empty classroom nearby. As soon as he got into the room her felt Ginny break free from his hand and before he knew what was going on the door was locked behind him, leaving him in the empty room. Harry knew something was wrong with this situation and mentally berated himself for getting trapped like this. He pointed his wand at the door, with the intention of blowing it away, only to realise that he didn't know how to do it, and couldn't do it even if he wanted to. In fact, he couldn't do anything he wanted to do, as he was currently falling to the ground, his body completely rigid. He braced (as much as one who can't move could) for the impact, only to find his landing was softer than expected. He heard feet moving, but as he was face down on the floor, he couldn't identify who it was. Harry's mind was racing. _Who the hell is doing this? What the hell are they going to do to me?_ Harry struggled against the charm, expecting his increased magical power to get him out of this sticky situation, only to find nothing doing. _If I get out of this, i'm going to kill Dumbledore_, Harry resolved. _If? If? I WILL get out of this._ A hood was then placed over Harry's head, more gently than he imagined a Death Eater would do, though that did nothing to reduce the anger boiling inside him. He remained face down, in a hood, for about a minute, his captors casting charms on him so that he couldn't hear what they were saying properly. Whoever was doing this had thought out every possible loophole that he could have used to garner their identities. Eventually, the hood was removed and he was made to lean against the wall, facing the inside of the room. There, he saw 3 of his fellow Gryffindors, Hermione, Ron and his seducer Ginny, wands pointed at him, but with nervous expressions on their face. Hermione waved her wand and Harry was able to hear clearly again.

"Harry," Hermione began "please don't be mad, but we had to make sure for your own safety and ours that you weren't under the influence of any dark magic". Harry had a million things to say to the 3 of them but those questions were relegated to the back of his mind when the door opened to reveal Albus Dumbledore, a jovial smile on his face as he surveyed the scene that he had seemingly stumbled upon.

"Is this a closed party or is there room for one more?" He asked, standing at the door way, his casual tone completely opposed to the palpable shock in the room.

"Well, I do hope you forgive my intrusion" Dumbledore said, the occupants of the room startled into silence. "I wanted to talk to Harry, but it seems that we will now have to add a few more seats" he said, "You don't mind, do you, Harry?" looking at Harry for a response, to which he of course he got none. "Very well," he said, continuing as if Harry had given his consent, "If you will all follow me to my office, we have much to discuss"

"And it would be better if you released Harry, Ms Granger, he would attract a lot of attention if he had to be carried" he added, his eyes twinkling with glee.


	5. Putting the house in order

_Really appreciate all the reviews, they were stupidly helpful. Tried as much as the story would permit me to work any suggestions/ criticisms into the story, so if your comment wasn't addressed then either I couldn't do it, or the answer might be coming in a later chapter :D Enjoy! _

**THE LEADER OF THE HOUSE**

**CHAPTER 5:**

**PUTTING THE HOUSE IN ORDER**

"So," began Dumbledore, his eyes scanning the occupants of his office "I believe I owe you all an explanation"

"You?" said the students in unison, clearly surprised by what Dumbledore said.

"Yes, me" laughed Dumbledore.

"So you're responsible for them, I don't know, trapping and holding me against my will? This is your fault?" asked Harry, his grip on his wand tightening under his robes.

"Well, to a certain extent yes it is my fault, but you must take some responsibility for this as well Harry" said Dumbledore, leaning forward in his seat.

"Me?" said Harry incredulously, also leaning forward in his chair

"Though the reason why you are to blame is because I underestimated the amount that your youthful exuberance would factor into your decision making." said Dumbledore, leaning back in his chair, the light reflecting on his glasses blocking his eyes from being seen.

"Youthful exuberance?" asked Harry, his tone sceptical.

"Yes." said Dumbledore, annoyingly simply. Harry exhaled in frustration, his questions lost as Dumbledore cut him off.

"Harry, I hope you don't mind but we need to deal with this current situation in order to get to the reason I wanted to see you, so if you would be so kind as to allow me to do that I would be grateful." When Harry grunted in consent Dumbledore continued. "Firstly, let me assure you that Harry is not under the influence of any dark magic-"

"Sorry to interrupt sir," interrupted Hermione "but how did you know that we thought that?"

"Well," smiled Dumbledore, "if you were conducting an investigation into a student, without telling any of your professors, I might add, then it could only have been for a very serious issue. Now whilst we as professors don't know everything that goes on in the castle, if any student that entered the ground were to be under the influence of dark magic, then I don't think it would be too much to expect us as professors to be able to detect and potentially deal with the situation. While I did not know exactly what your suspicions were, it would not take a genius to make a connection between a personality change and dark magic, though that is a sad commentary on the times we live in-" Dumbledore paused, a sad smile on his face, "but," his joviality returning with a clap of his hands, "I urge you not to undertake such a mission again, though I must commend you on the simplicity of your plan, even if it was a bit rough around the edges, as the simple plans tend to be the most successful." Dumbledore said. "You may return to your common room and prepare for dinner." He added, motioning for them to leave his office. "Harry," Dumbledore added, "you wouldn't mind staying a bit longer would you?" Dumbledore asked rhetorically. Harry returned to his former seat, and when the other three confused but relieved Gryffindors left, Harry looked at Dumbledore, only to see his expression had changed in a blink of an eye to one of disappointment. Harry was taken aback; his anger was being replaced with a sense of guilt, against his will.

"Harry, I cannot pretend to understand the emotions you are feeling right now, but I must stress that you were rather foolhardy to believe me in one breath and then not follow my orders in another." Dumbledore said, his tone filled with disappointment. Harry's jaw slacked and the sudden rush of guilt was replaced just as quickly as it came by anger and shock.

"How did I believe you in one breath and not follow your orders in another?" asked Harry, trying to keep his tone even

"If you remember what occurred when we last met, I helped you to realise you full potential, and then gave you some guidelines to follow" Dumbledore said, his level of eye contact so intense, as if he was commanding him to tell the truth by looking at him.

"Do you remember those guidelines?" Dumbledore asked, peering over his glasses at Harry.

"Y-yes" lied Harry, breaking eye contact with his headmaster

"So you haven't tried any magic that you knew you couldn't do prior to our previous meeting?" asked Dumbledore, his tone not giving away any of his emotions, and as Harry was not looking at him, he couldn't tell what the old man was thinking

"No" lied Harry again, his confidence growing in the belief that he was fooling his headmaster

"And you haven't mentioned these meetings to anyone have you?" asked Dumbledore again, his tone giving away nothing.

"No" lied Harry, finally making eye contact with his headmaster to see him smiling as brightly as if Harry's lies were going to send the Chudley Cannons to the top of the quidditch league this season.

"I'm not going to ask if you fulfilled the last request, as it is rather moot at this point" Dumbledore smiled, "but now I must ask for your forgiveness" the smile fading from the old man's face

"Wait, hold on, what the _hell_ is going on here?" asked Harry, the rollercoaster of emotions he had been going through finally bursting forth, his face a mixture of anger, frustration and exasperation

"I'm very sorry to have to put you through this façade, but people tend to learn faster when they make their own mistakes, then when someone warns them of the dangers they face. It was necessary in order for you to understand what you had at your disposal, as I could not have told you even if wanted to, and then there was the case of whether or not you were going to believe what I told you, which, we have proven that you don't, not that I'm upset about that at all, in fact, I'm very proud that you didn't trust me enough to do everything that I told you, that would have shown me that you were too naïve to fully utilise your potential, something which could have disastrous effects for you, but, we don't have to go down that path." Dumbledore went on seemingly forever, the information leaving his mouth in a constant, never-ending stream, while Harry just sat there, his face the perfect picture of the word 'huh?' when Dumbledore stopped talking, he saw Harry remain motionless, as if he had been cursed that way, when in reality he just needed time to process the amount of information he had just received. Dumbledore allowed him that time, his eagerness to continue was evident by his body language, but he held it in check. When Harry roused from his state of shock, Harry found that his curiosity was quashed by the sheer volume of information Dumbledore had just given him. He was sure he didn't get all of it, but in the limited time that he had been dealing with Dumbledore, it seemed that if Harry wasn't confused at the end then something was wrong.

"May I continue?" asked Dumbledore, keen to alleviate the confusion in Harry's mind. Harry nodded in consent, hoping that Dumbledore would explain this time.

"Right, as I said when we previously met, you are meant for great things, Harry. Those great things are entirely dependent on the type of person you are. You are the person you are today because of your parents, and I'm glad that you did contact them about your _progress_, especially as I forbade you to do it. That action has more weight than you could ever imagine. Even though you know that trusting people is dangerous, you still trust your parents enough to tell them. This ability to trust, well more accurately, this ability to trust those _who have earned it_ is one of your greatest strengths, Harry, and you have your parents to thank for that."

"But I didn't tell you that I spoke to my parents" interrupted Harry, glad that Dumbledore was explaining. There was a definite need for some of that, thought Harry.

"I'm afraid it's very difficult to get information out of the castle without me knowing, and in fairness, it was only a theory, proved by your reaction. But, I owe you more reasoning as to my actions, so you may ask any question you wish, though I'm afraid you are going to have to accept that I wont be able to explain everything that you ask of me, due to a combination of many things, but I will endeavour to answer the rest." said Dumbledore, taking of his glasses and polishing them with his robes. Harry paused. Before, there were so many questions that he wanted to ask, but now, he couldn't think of a single one. He took a deep breath, looking for more thinking time, and to relax.

"What great things am I meant for?" asked Harry

"Aah, I could have guessed that your first question would be one that I wouldn't be able to give you a proper answer. I can only theorise as to what you could do, but to tell you what you could do, could potentially inhibit what you are supposed to do." Dumbledore said, putting his glasses back on his face.

"Look, I'm confused and hiding things from you hasn't helped me, so basically, I tried a bit of legendary transfiguration and it worked, so I know that my magic is better than it was, but I still don't know what the hell to do. You've put all this pressure on me by saying that I'm meant for great things that you apparently can't tell me about, but at the end of the day, anything that I do will be wiped out by Voldemort, so what the point?" Harry said, sighing at the end

"_That's_ the point Harry!" Dumbledore said "Don't you see, this defeatist attitude that has swept over Britain is playing into Voldermort's hands! He has been at large for over 2 decades and yet he hasn't accomplished half the things that he would have wanted to! Hogwarts is still here, free from his control, and wizards are thriving in the muggle world. If anything, we can thank Voldemort for modernising our customs by forcing us to integrate! I want you to remember this Harry, for every action, there is an opposite and equal reaction. That means that no matter how powerful Voldemort seems, there is an equally powerful force working against him. Now that force may be one person, or it may be the entirety of wizarding Britain, but all I know is that there is no need for such a defeatist attitude" Dumbledore finished. Harry looked at Dumbledore with a new sense of self-purpose. "Sir, don't you think that you could be that opposite to Voldemort?" asked Harry, his eyes filled with ideas. Dumbledore smiled.

"I'm flattered Harry, but I'm afraid I can't be. My time for such actions has long since passed. I'm sure I will have a part to play, as we all will, if Voldemort is to be beaten, but no, I cannot do it alone."

"Oh, ok" said Harry, a sad smile on his face.

"Well, if that's all the questions you have, I believe its time for you to make your way to dinner" Dumbledore said, getting up.

"Yes, of course sir." Harry said, getting up rather quickly and inadvertently knocking his chair over. Dumbledore held up a hand at Harry's attempted apology, "I owe you more apologies than you could ever give me." He said, giving Harry more to reflect on, "On to dinner!" Dumbledore cried, ushering Harry out of his office and towards the Great Hall.

Hermione, Ron and Ginny left Dumbledore's office with mixed emotions. The overwhelming one was relief; being caught by Dumbledore was scary. Actually, scary is an understatement. The three of them thought that they were going to be in the worst trouble ever, starting with expulsion from Hogwarts and having their wands snapped. There was also a feeling of confusion. Dumbledore telling them that their actions were his fault made them all think that there was more to the story than he was letting on. They also felt guilty. Harry was completely innocent, so they put him through all of that torture for nothing. No amount of rationalising it would take that fact away. As they made their way back to the common room, there was no talking; each wrapped up in their own thoughts. As they reached the entrance to the common room, Hermione spoke.

"You know this isn't over, don't you?" she said, causing Ron and Ginny to stop in their tracks.

"What do you mean it's not over?" asked Ron, rounding on Hermione.

"I didn't sign up for this." Ginny said, continuing towards the common room.

"Wait!" said Hermione, her hushed tones doing nothing to hide the urgency in her voice. "How can you just leave it as is now? Aren't you the tiniest bit curious as to what happened just now?"

"Look, Hermione, I don't know about Ginny, but I'm just happy to still be a student here, anything else is someone else's problem." said Ron,

"Well, Ginny, what about you?" asked Hermione, arms folded in front of her chest. Ginny, who had paused when Hermione told her to wait, turned around to face her elders.

"It's clear there something going on there, but it's not for us to pry, if we were meant to know, we would know by now." said Ginny, turning on her heel and entering the common room. Ron made movements to join Ginny, only to be stopped by Hermione's hand his elbow.

"Ron, we can't just let this slide, I know you're curious about this as well." she said, looking him directly in the eye, willing him to go along with her.

"Look, some things are just better left alone you know?" Ron said, breaking eye contact. "Sometimes you just gotta ease up on your curiosity, it's gotten you into trouble too many times, and need I remind you about our 3rd year?"

"That was part your fault as well!" cried Hermione, clearly offended that Ron was trying to blame her for _that_.

"I was only involved because you begged me!" said Ron, his temper getting the better of him. The two of them argued for a few minutes until Ron walked off in a huff, leaving Hermione, red in the face from anger, standing in the corridor outside the Gryffindor common room. She stood there, staring at the portrait of the Fat Lady for a few seconds before storming off in the direction of the library, resolved to find out what was going on between Dumbledore and Harry.

Ginny was getting herself back on track. A couple days had passed since they tricked Harry and she hadn't had any dreams about him. She barely saw him in real life either. She was glad that she wasn't having dreams about him anymore; they really were distracting her from doing anything productive in the mornings, her mind was just too preoccupied, but if she was being truly honest to herself, she did miss looking at him. She couldn't deny the fact that she was attracted to him, but his actions were a turn off. But this was more than just attraction, she was finding that the less of him she saw, the more she sought him, it wasn't a case of her needing to see him, she just needed to be around him. It was a confusing notion for Ginny to get her head around, but it was clear that there was something about Harry now that _drew_ people to him. The few times she saw him in those couple days he was never alone, surrounded by a flock of girls and boys, who were heralding him as if he were the answer to all their problems. As much as Ginny didn't like to admit it, Hermione was right about there being something about him that they were missing. It was ridiculously obvious to anyone who looked at Harry, but that was the problem, most people didn't _look_ at Harry, they were just taken in by whatever it was that Harry had suddenly picked up, and chief amongst those people were Ginny's friends. Everyday was about Harry. Where he was, what he was doing and who he was doing it with. Ginny usually sat back during these conversation; conversations which were becoming so regular that her silence could no longer be chalked to being heartbroken, so she had to move from them to a different discussion about Harry; Hermione's conspiracy theories.

"I bet you he has been given lessons from Dumbledore in order to defeat Voldemort." Hermione said during one such conversation.

"I doubt it, I mean, I know the guy is popular know, but how is that any comparison to what Dumbledore can do in a duel, especially against Voldemort." Ron said.

"It's true, there's no contest between Dumbledore and Harry." Ginny added, the three of them in armchairs in the common room

"Yeah, I suppose so, but wouldn't that be just like Dumbledore?" said Hermione, leaning forward.

"How would you know?" asked Ron "Have you even had a conversation with the man before? How in the bloody hell can you know what he would do?" asked Ron, disbelievingly.

"Well, if you must know, I've read up on Dumbledore-"

"Of course you have" interrupted Ron "because you can learn everything about someone in a book."

"Wh-" began Hermione heatedly.

"Enough!" interjected Ginny, stopping the inevitable argument between the two of them. "Hermione you could be right, but we just can't be sure. Ron, give her a break, its not like you've got ay ideas as to why Harry suddenly got all amazing."

"Amazing?" murmured Hermione, her eyebrows raised, but her eyes focused on an interesting patch of carpet by the foot of her chair.

"How have we not just asked the guy? I mean, we know he's not evil or nothing-" began Ron

"Or anything" interjected Hermione

"_Or anything_" Ron said through gritted teeth, glaring at Hermione, who smiled sweetly back at him, "but he's still just a student here like you or me, so he cant be doing anything _that_ different from the rest of us."

"How do you know that?" asked Hermione "We don't know anything about him, other than what Dumbledore has told us, so we can't really rule anything out."

"So, what do we do now?" asked Ginny, looking at Harry, who just entered the common room, be entertained by a gaggle of girls.

"I don't know" admitted Hermione, her gaze also on Harry, "I suppose for now we wait and see if anything suspicious happens around him."

"Or we could get to know him better, maybe be his friends" suggested Ron.

"I doubt he wants to befriend with us" said Ginny, turning away from Harry.

"We won't know until we try." said Ron, looking at Hermione for support.

"Ron has a point." said Hermione, blushing slightly when Ron smiled at her agreement. "I mean, no harm can come from getting to know this new Harry."

"So you want to be like them?" asked Ginny, her thumb pointed in the direction of the glassy eyed companions of Harry.

"Not everyone is like that, Ginny," said Hermione, "those girls have always been vapid so their behaviour isn't out of character."

"Those girls are my friends" said Ginny, rather coldly.

"Oh, I didn't mean any offense-" said Hermione, her face getting rather heated.

"Too late" said Ginny, and with that she left, ignoring Hermione, who was calling her name from across the common room. Ginny berated herself as she left; she let her frustration at Harry out to the wrong person. In fact, it was a lot more complicated then just frustration, this feeling she had towards Harry, but she was having difficulty understanding exactly what it was. It didn't help that she didn't really have anyone to talk to about it, so normally she put it to the back of her mind, and when that didn't work, she went for a walk. And that plan was working until she was stopped in her tracks by a hand tugging her elbow. A hand belonging to Harry Potter.


End file.
